CLEVELAND -- Cleveland's 37th International Film Festival is just five days away and its crew and an army of volunteers are scrambling to be ready when the curtain goes up at Tower City Wednesday.

The Festival will feature a record 345 films from 65 countries.

It's been expanded from last year's 11 to 12 days. For the first time, films are being shown in the surrounding cities of Akron and Oberlin.

The festival's stature as one of the largest in the eastern half of the United States is growing.

Associate Director Patrick Shepherd said, "We have a sterling international reputation. If you are in Europe and tell somebody you are from Cleveland, they will tell you you have a great orchestra and a great film festival."